The Art of Being Thankful

Krystal Covington, MBA

This time of year there's a lot of talk about being thankful and having the holiday spirit, but we don't always feel up to it when the season comes around. 

As professional women with a lot going on it's easy to focus on daily survival:

• Get the work done.
• Tend to the children.
• Make dinner/pack lunch.
• Clean up, sleep repeat.

And during the holidays we're adding:

• Plan holiday dinners and winter travel.
• Attend holiday parties.
• Send greeting cards.
• Buy gifts.

All of this leaves little time and energy to feel thankful.

My thoughts for you as we move closer into these moments of potential overwhelm are this.

• Remember what your values are: What's truly important to you may not lie in the traditions of the season. Remember who you are and what matters in your life and when you find yourself getting lost in others' expectations take a moment to separate from the situation and focus on the values that matter. 

 

• Don't allow what you should do to stress you out:  I worked with a wise coach who pointed out my major flaw of regularly acting based on what I thought I should be doing at any given moment. He explained that should creates stress and our focus should be on what we want instead. I want to delight my family by serving an amazing pie, instead of, I should make pie because everyone always asks for it. Just changing that language makes a huge difference in the emotions tied to the action. 

 

• Tap into your community: Who are the people in your life that bring you back to balance? Prioritize relationships that help you feel at ease and allow you to be your true self without judgement. Sometimes the best person for that job might be you, so be sure to schedule yourself non-negotiable alone time to pause, regenerate, and reflect. 

I truly wish you an amazing holiday season and hope to see you at our December Women of Denver events.